Edward Arnold Biography

Fast Facts

• Before landing a significant role in "The Misleading Lady" in 1916, he found work as an extra for Essanay Studios and World Studios
• Following the death of his parents, he moved in with his uncle and soon began to pursue a career in acting, making his first New York stage appearance at age 12 in "The Merchant of Venice․"
• Worked as a bellhop, stoker and a butcher's assistant before pursuing a career in acting
• From 1940 to 1942, he was the acting president of the Screen Actors Guild
• Was the fourth acting president of the Actors Branch
• Though an anti-Communist, he was a staunch opponent of the studios blacklisting suspected Communists
• Ran for Los Angeles City Alderman in the 1940s, but lost in a close election